Volleyball Thoughts.

Written Friday July 26th at 4:15 PM

Here are my early Volleyball thoughts on each team heading into the season.

EARLY INSIDE THE OAA TOP TEN.

1. Stoney Creek

2. Clarkston

3. Troy

4. Lake Orion

5. Adams

6. Bloomfield Hills

7. Groves

8. West Bloomfield

9. Seaholm

10. Ferndale

Blue:

In the Blue this division looks to be a two team race right now with a possible dark horse.

Ferndale: The Eagles are built for right now and the future, fresh off a district title last season. Emily Foster returns for coach Stella Johnstone among others. Ferndale has a favorable district as well. This program is on the rise.

Southfield Arts and Tech: The Warriors lost three seniors from last season’s team but they should be better this season for coach Alicia Love. Division championship should be the goal this season for Southfield Arts and Tech.

Royal Oak: The Ravens have a new coach in Ciara Schultz and it should take her some time to get her system into play. Royal Oak will have to adjust to Schultz’s new system. It will be interesting to see where the Ravens are at this season.

Pontiac: It could be a long season for the Phoenix and coach Kyrie Holloman. Pontiac should be competitive but moving up from Division Two to Division One will certainly bring challenges for this program. It will be interesting to see what happens with Pontiac.

Oak Park: It could be a long season for the Knights. Oak Park has struggled in volleyball recently. It will be interesting to see what happens with the Knights.

White:

In the White, I see this division being a two team race but there is a darkhorse candidate in this division.

Bloomfield Hills: The Blackhawks moved down from the Red to the White should be the early favorite in this division. Bloomfield Hills will have Alexa Rousseau, Ava Pertuchi, among other back for second year coach Larry Wyatt. Wyatt should have his system in full swing early into the season. If his team are on the same page then they could make a run.

Seaholm: It feels odd not to see the Maples in the Red after moving down to the White. Maddy Ligon returns for coach Heather Gambone from a team that lost two seniors last season. Seaholm is a team that I’m watching closely not only in the division but also in the postseason as well.

Troy Athens: The Red Hawks under coach Stacy Mueller should be better this season after making the district finals a year ago. Troy Athens will be an interesting team to watch this season. The Red Hawks have the talent to be competitive this season.

North Farmington: The Raiders made a complete change in their coaching staff bringing in Michael Love from Harrison. Love will have a tough task for adjusting with his new team. It will be interesting how he handles it. If his new team is not on the same page they are in trouble.

Rochester: The Falcons lost a ton of talent from last season however coach Kirk Gibbs is hoping that his younger players learned from last season which should carry them onto this season. Rochester will have to rely on Molly Rogers to carry them this season. The Falcons season will depend on progress and right now this team is heading in an upward direction.

Avondale: The Yellow Jackets should be better heading into the 2019 season. Avondale has a lot of unproven players heading into the season. Could the Yellow Jackets surprise me and some folks this season???

Berkley: The Bears moved up to the White this season but last season was very disappointing for Berkley but there is hope. There is no reason that the Bears should be better and improved. They are also in a favorable district as well. This will be a team to keep an eye on this season.

Farmington: It could be a challenge for the Falcons this season. Farmington will have to replace a lot for coach Kate Drews. It could be a long season for the Falcons.

Red:

In the Red, I see this division being a dog fight.

Stoney Creek: The Cougars looks to be the early favorite especially with Kate Stration, Ainsley Guse, and Sydney Tomlak back for coach Ross Talbot. Stoney Creek is a serious State title contender this season.

Clarkston: The Wolves have a ton of proven division one talents in Clare Nowicki, Abby Tomlie, Ali Warrington, Hannah Cady, and Jordan Newblatt. This current senior class that coach Kelly Pinner has went undefeated when they were freshman. The Wolves have a ton to prove this season.

Lake Orion: The Dragons are fresh off a State title run will be different in 2019 for coach Tony Scavarda. Lake Orion will be very young this season with two returning players who saw significant playing time in Kendall Robinson, and Reagen Goeke. If the Dragons can develop the young players then who knows what will happen with this team. Lake Orion has a ton of questions heading into the season.

Troy: The Colts are loaded when you look at this team. They have Fran McBride, Alexis Morse, Julia Armstrong, and Athena Sampson back for coach Tom Vigilant. Troy should be in the thick of the race this season.

Adams: The Highlanders made the home run hire of hiring Terry Baughman. They were around 500 last season has the majority of their team returning including Alexis Wolas, Laura Sebestian, and Emanuela Gjokaj. Adams will go through an early transition to adjust to Baughman’s system but I wouldn’t want to see this team come in late October, early November.

Groves: The Falcons have the majority of their team back for second year coach Jessica Prepolec but they could have a difficult time making the adjustment to playing in the Red. They have Ellie Ruprich back but this team will need to step their game up if they want to make some noise in the Red.

West Bloomfield: The Lakers are pretty much in the same boat as Groves with the move to the Red after winning the White last season. They have Laura King, Grace Allread, and Delaney Lambert back for coach Lauren DeLuyck-Forbes. West Bloomfield has a great shot to win their district in November and the experience in the Red should help them moving forward.

Oxford: The Wildcats have a lot of questions this season for third year coach Bryan Kim. They have managed to compete in a high level but struggled last season. Oxford should be better this season but being in the Red could make things that much tougher for the Wildcats this season.

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